Coady hails local women’s leadership gains

DAR ES SALAAM: CANADA-based Coady Institute Executive Director, Ms Eileen Alma, has praised the progress made in Tanzania through the implementation of the Engage project, which aims to strengthen the leadership capacity of women in the informal sector.

The project, named Engage: Women’s Empowerment and Active Citizenship Programme, is being implemented in five countries, including Bangladesh, Ethiopia, Haiti, India and Tanzania. In Tanzania, the programme is being rolled out by the Tanzania Gender Networking Programme (TGNP), helping women gain the knowledge and skills needed to become leaders and contribute to their communities.

Speaking during the “Engage” Gathering on Women’s Empowerment and Active Citizenship, held in Dar es Salaam, Ms Alma commended TGNP for being at the forefront of advancing women’s rights. She said the programme has benefited many women in both rural and urban areas by enabling them to actively engage in politics and leadership.

“Coady has supported many graduates from Tanzania, and three of them are currently women Members of Parliament elected in the recent elections,” she said.

Ms Alma added: “This is truly exciting for us to see tangible results, and we hope this reflects a continuing commitment by both women’s movements and men toward achieving gender equality.” She noted that Coady Institute has been supporting and partnering with TGNP for more than fifteen years to advance women’s leadership and empowerment.

“We have to lift women out of poverty, help them grow economically, support them to become more socially engaged, and enable them to move into decisionmaking roles alongside men, whether at the local level or within communities,” she said.

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She further said the three-day gathering aimed to celebrate the Engage programme, supported by the Canadian government, which is coming to an end after running for six and a half years.

In her welcoming remarks, TGNP Board Chair, Ms Gemma Akilimali, said the Engage Global Gathering builds on TGNP’s longstanding commitment to nurturing grassroots leadership, strengthening collective action and amplifying women’s voices in decision-making spaces.

“This gathering comes at a critical time, when strengthening women’s leadership and active citizenship is not only important, it is urgent,” she said.

Ms Akilimali noted that while notable progress has been made globally, women continue to face systemic barriers to leadership, political participation, economic decision-making and civic engagement.

She said strengthening women’s leadership is therefore not only a matter of equality, but also a strategic imperative for building inclusive, resilient and just societies.

A participant from the organisation for Women in Self Employment (WISE) in Ethiopia Ms Genet Tilahun said that after undergoing several trainings under the project and gained a lot of knowledge, she is currently serving as a leader for the primary savings and credit cooperatives in her organisation.

“Before joining WISE, I was a kindergarten teacher. After participating in the programme and acquired various knowledge and skills through capacity-building trainings, I was able to take on a leadership position in our savings and credit cooperative,” she said.

Ms Tilahun said she is currently serving as the Board Chairperson of the Union and also the Vice Chairperson of the Federation, which the union helped establish.

Ms Masresha Assefa from WISE who serves as loan member in Savings and Credit Cooperative in Ethiopia said that the capacity building trainings conducted under the project has helped her to gain a lot of knowledge and skills which helped to change her mindset and attitudes.

She called on other women in Ethiopia and Tanzania to take advantage of the opportunities provided through various projects, to equip themselves with different knowledge and skills, so they can become leaders and make a positive impact on their communities.